“Love for the sake of love because loving makes you happy.” – Sri Swami Satchidananda

“Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness and all else shall be added unto you.” – Jesus

“Live your life like a prayer.” – Dr. David R. Hawkins

“The Kingdom of God is within you.” – Jesus

“Happiness does not come from outside you.” – Sri Swami Satchidananda

“Do it with joy or not at all.” – Gandhi

“Do nothing that may be unworthy of the glorious reality within your own heart, and you shall be happy and remain happy.” – Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

“Keep serenity as a goal.” – Dr. David R. Hawkins

“To be caring and kind is all that is necessary.” – Dr. David R. Hawkins

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A major part along the spiritual path is selecting a truth who knows and is the truth experientially. Once a teacher has been selected, then a willingness to surrender and unconditionally accept the teachings advances one along the journey.

The ego is a voice inside us that operates by seeking selfish pleasure and gain, and it believes it is a separate entity and fears for its own survival. Only out of fear does anyone ever act selfishly. And, the core of all spiritual teachings is selflessness – because that is the Reality. The ego thinks it is a separate physical entity, but the Reality is that “there is only The One, and we are it – we share in it.” (Dr. Hawkins) With an awareness of the Oneness of All Life, Love and selflessness are obvious choices.

Back to surrendering to the teachings…the ego will want to rebel against the teachings, insisting on its own way of doing things and being in the world. For example, if you select Jesus as your spiritual teacher, and Jesus states, “Judge not lest ye be not judged,” with utmost sincerity a spiritual aspirant is able to surrender all judgments and align fully with the teaching. The ego will seek to make exceptions to the teaching because it loves the juice it gets from judging others and operating from fictitious hierarchies of better than / worse than, right/wrong, etc.

In the above example, notice Jesus doesn’t give specific times of day or specific people to practice non-judgment with. Rather, it is a blanket statement, suggesting it is to be practiced all of the time, in all circumstances, no matter what. Unconditionality is the core of any spiritual practice. The ego loves to compartmentalize life and separate religious beliefs and spiritual practice its ordinary life, but with all sincerity we can reach a place of totally being aligned with the spiritual practice at all times, no matter what. When we reach the “no matter what” attitude and energy behind our spiritual practice, success is a guarantee.

Practicing all of the time can sound daunting, but the good news is that one not need to practice all of the teachings all at once. Actually, by simply practicing one teaching, in many ways, one is truly practicing all of them. All the teachings are basically – Love. So to the extent that one practices love unconditionally, one is advancing steadily toward the goal and evolving spiritually. Love takes many forms and can look like kindness, caring, gentleness, patience, non-judgment, dedication, devotion, cheerfulness, service, etc. The form it takes doesn’t matter so much. The key is to pick one practice and stick to it in all circumstances, no matter what.

This is a great relief! We don’t need to read all the scriptures or learn from all the teachings. One simple teaching, or even one single word, can take us all the way to the spiritual goal. The key is sincerity. And vigilance! To hold to the spiritual practice and the spiritual goal in all circumstances, no matter what. No matter what!

Of course, this isn’t too say don’t read the scriptures. Reading scriptures and listening to spiritual teachers can serve to familiarize oneself with the teachings and elevate one’s consciousness, but ultimately the aspirant has to go within. Everything is within. The Kingdom is Within! The Truth need not be sought externally; it is within, everywhere, always present, as what you are. Thou art That!

By practicing something simple like kindness in all circumstances, at all times, no matter what – the truth quickly reveals itself. Service is fulfilling and feels good. Sowing kind thoughts and actions reaps kindness in all forms. Everything is connected – there is no separation. When we realize there is no separation, and that our every single thought is powerful and matters supremely, then we begin to own cosmic responsibility over this gift of life and consciousness and choose loving thoughts and loving actions in all circumstances, and we realize we are not separate.

More good news, according to Dr. David R. Hawkins and his incredible spiritual research, one loving thought is so powerful that is assuredly cancels out all negative thoughts one could think throughout the day. Love is vastly more powerful than fear – so even if we notice moments when we get caught in negative thinking or projecting judgments and criticism – we can relax knowing that sending a few loving, healing, kind thoughts immediately counterbalances whatever negative energy we might have been wallowing in. So, thinking loving thoughts 🙂

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Pick your spiritual tool of choice – be it kindness, non-judgment, devotion, dedication, forgiveness, compassion, selfless service, etc. – and practice it all the time no matter what.

Just to share briefly from ‘personal’ experience, one of my very favorite sayings from the Bhagavad Gita is “Tyagat shantir anantaram,” translated to mean, “The dedicated ever enjoy Supreme Peace.”

If you want Supreme Peace, all you have to do is dedicate this moment. Dedicate it to humanity, all creation, the Lord, Love, Peace, the Truth, your family and friends, teachers, the suffering and dying – what it may be – and Supreme Peace reveals its presence.

Dedication transcends the ego and the sense of smallness, pettiness, selfishness, and separateness. It expands our identity and elevates us into a spirit of purity and service. Try it out!

In upcoming posts, we’ll look at more specific spiritual tools one can use to elevate one’s consciousness, purify and ultimately transcend the ego. We’ll look at the traditional yogic pathways to God including Jnana, Bhakti, Raja, and Karma Yoga, and possibly some other great paths.

Whatever happens, it is all for good, it is all for fun, and it is all God’s Will.